Help from your church family

 

I know this doesn't always work, but it's a place to start if you require assistance. Your local church family may or may not have all of the resources to meet your needs, but maybe they can direct you to someone or somewhere that can help.
     We're blessed to have a loving, caring church family. We're also blessed to have several services set up specifically to minister to our church body or even to the surrounding communities. However, some of these ideas could be instigated in smaller churches as well:
- Meal Train: people volunteer to deliver a meal to people recovering from surgery or going through debilitating medical treatment. See mealtrain.com
- Counseling: a service normally provided by the pastor can be expanded by training other church members with tools to help them counsel those in need.
- Discipleship Groups: when a new believer comes to faith, it's important that they be discipled right away so that their new-found faith is made stronger with knowledge of what God's word says, what the church believes, etc. It's also important because we want new believers to become part of the church, serving, encouraging others, sharing their testimony. Today's converts could be tomorrow's church leaders.
- Physical Needs: money could be budgeted to help people who have trouble paying a bill or handling an emergency.
- Cards of Encouragement: our church has a list of people who would benefit from receiving a card once in a while. Maybe they're sick or grieving or lost their job, whatever the situation, it's a wonderful way to minister to those in need.
- Food Pantry: some churches partner together to stock a food pantry within the community.
- Transportation: members could volunteer to take people to doctor's appointments and/or run errands.

     The opportunities to serve are endless. If you have an idea for a way to meet a need, talk to your church leaders. If you have a need, talk to your church leaders. Either situation is a way to connect with your church family.
     If you are able, find a way to serve within your church. Everyone has the ability to do something, whether it's sending an encouraging text or card to someone who's going through a rough time, or making coffee on Sunday morning, or mowing the lawn, or being on the prayer chain. Of course, some tasks are harder than others. Some take more of a time commitment but find something you can do and be a part of the solution.

Is anyone among you suffering? Let him pray. Is anyone cheerful? Let him sing psalms. Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven. Confess your trespasses to one another, and pray for one another, that you may be healed. The effective, fervent prayer of a righteous man avails much. Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed earnestly that it would not rain; and it did not rain on the land for three years and six months. And he prayed again, and the heaven gave rain, and the earth produced its fruit.

James 5:13-18 NKJV

You may also like:
-"Isolation"
-"Pray for the health of The Church"
-"Peter is the rock"

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Please join me this week in praying for those who need help but don't ask for it. Pray that they see the benefits of allowing others to help them. Pray that they have good experiences as a result of opening up to others. Pray that they are served by Christians who show Christ to them. Let's also pray for those who refuse to help, for whatever reason. Pray that God softens their hearts and minds, that he give them servants' hearts so that they may know the joy in working together as one body of Christ and the reward of knowing they are doing God's will.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #bibleverse #bible #help #ask #need #churchfamily #serve #prayer #services #churchelders #assisance #church #servantsheart #hope #counseling

Prudent wife

 

House and wealth are inherited from fathers, 

but a prudent wife is from the Lord.

Proverbs 19:14 ESV

I had to look up the word "prudent" and just in case you were unsure about it, too, the Oxford Languages Dictionary (online) defines it as, "acting with or showing care and thought for the future." 

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Adornment

 

 but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which in God's sight is very precious. 

1 Peter 3:4 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Let her be praised

 

10  An excellent wife who can find?

    She is far more precious than jewels.

11 The heart of her husband trusts in her,

    and he will have no lack of gain.

12 She does him good, and not harm,

    all the days of her life.

17 She dresses herself with strength

    and makes her arms strong.

20 She opens her hand to the poor

    and reaches out her hands to the needy.

25 Strength and dignity are her clothing,

    and she laughs at the time to come.

26 She opens her mouth with wisdom,

    and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.

27 She looks well to the ways of her household

    and does not eat the bread of idleness.

28 Her children rise up and call her blessed;

    her husband also, and he praises her:

29 “Many women have done excellently,

    but you surpass them all.”

30 Charm is deceitful, and beauty is vain,

    but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised.

31 Give her of the fruit of her hands,

    and let her works praise her in the gates.

Proverbs 31 Select verses (ESV)

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

She loves Him

 

You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might.

Deuteronomy 6:5 ESV

Pray that your Pastor's wife loves God with all her heart and that she feels how much our Father loves her.

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Qualifications of an overseer

 

This verse is in a section of my Bible labeled "Qualifications for Overseers" and I thought it was fitting for a Pastor's wife also, so I modified (italicized words) and removed one section (...) of 1 Timothy 3:1-7 to fit with our prayers this week. 

The saying is trustworthy: If anyone aspires to the office of Pastor's wife, she desires a noble task. Therefore a Pastor's wife must be above reproach, ... sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable, able to teach, not a drunkard, not violent but gentle, not quarrelsome, not a lover of money. She must manage her own household well, with all dignity keeping her children submissive, for if someone does not know how to manage her own household, how will she care for God's church? She must not be a recent convert, or she may become puffed up with conceit and fall into the condemnation of the devil. Moreover, she must be well thought of by outsiders, so that she may not fall into disgrace, into a snare of the devil.

The role of Pastor's wife must be a daunting task, having to share one's husband with the entire congregation, personal events being shared as the sermon anecdote, being held to higher standards in the minds of some. Please lift up your Pastor's wife in prayer. Send her a card. Text her to see if she needs anything. Love her as your sister.

If you have a bible verse or a prayer you would like to share for your Pastor's wife, please leave it in the comments below.

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Love from a pure heart

 

When my husband and I started attending The Ridge, we went sporadically because we were visiting different churches in town each week. After visiting one or two we'd go back to The Ridge for a week or two. I was definitely drawn to that particular church but my husband wanted to check out as many as possible. 

     During our third or fourth visit, the woman sitting in front of us turned around and introduced herself as Terry. We talked for several minutes before the service started and then she asked if we had heard her husband speak before. I asked her who her husband was and she said, "Rollie." 

     Until she said that, I had absolutely no idea she was the Pastor's wife. I don't know what my expectations were, maybe that as the Pastor's wife she would be surrounded by people needing her attention, or busy doing something other than talking to me, a stranger. I don't know. What I do know is that, smooth as silk she struck up a conversation with me and made me feel like I belonged there. I don't remember anything she said, but whatever it was, it was what I needed to hear at that specific time.

     So, to Terry and all of the wives of Pastors, I want to say "thank you" for everything you do, for your words of kindness, encouragement, and love, and for fulfilling such an important role in God's Kingdom.

The aim of our charge is love that issues 

from a pure heart and a good conscience 

and a sincere faith.

1 Timothy 1:5 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @7DegreesOfMe <--- recently changed
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Pray for the Pastor's Wife

 

May God bless the Pastor's wife. 

     A woman in our Lifegroup yesterday, we'll call her Dee, shared a little story about her mother. At some point during her life, Dee's mom told her children about how "rowdy" she used to be in her younger days. This surprised the grown children and Dee commented, "But you're a Pastor's wife." Then it hit me...we pray for our Pastors, but often forget to pray for their wives.

     Can you imagine being married to a Pastor? I feel like they are held to this higher standard than the rest of us, whether real or imagined. What a burden that must be.

     From stories I've heard from the Pastor, I gather that when God called him into service, He also called his wife, so her heart is there for the task. I am in awe of her.

Keep your heart with all vigilance,

for from it flow the springs of life.

Proverbs 4:23 ESV

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Please join me this week in praying for our Pastors' wives. Pray that they feel nothing but love and encouragement from their congregations. Pray that the church family lift her up in their prayers and support her. Also, pray that their husbands are sensitive to their needs.

I'll post daily reminders on:

twitter @7DegreesOfMe

Instagram @archadia27
Pinterest Prayer Group #7thHourPrayerPower

Facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

#7thHourPrayerPower #BibleVerses #bible #PastorsWife #woman #church #love #ChurchFamily #wife #PrayerGroup

Preach the word

Pay careful attention to yourselves and to all the flock, 

in which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, 

to care for the church of God, which he obtained with his own blood.

Acts 20:28 ESV

Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; 

reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching.

2 Timothy 4:2 ESV

An eager Shepherd

Pray for a Pastor, for he is to:

"Shepherd the flock of God that is among you, 

exercising oversight, not under compulsion, 

but willingly, 

as God would have you; 

not for shameful gain, but eagerly;"

1 Peter 5:2 ESV

Imitate their faith

Remember your leaders, 

those who spoke to you the word of God. 

Consider the outcome of their way of life,

and imitate their faith.

Hebrews 13:7 ESV

Provide for your Shepherd

During Biblical times, people took in the Holy men, Prophets, Disciples providing shelter and food. This doesn't seem necessary nowadays because our Pastors aren't nomadic anymore, but surely there is something that we, as the flock, can do for our Shepherds that will show them our appreciation, love, and support. Pray about it.

One day Elisha went on to Shunem, where a wealthy woman lived, who urged him to eat some food. So whenever he passed that way, he would turn in there to eat food. And she said to her husband, “Behold now, I know that this is a holy man of God who is continually passing our way. Let us make a small room on the roof with walls and put there for him a bed, a table, a chair, and a lamp, so that whenever he comes to us, he can go in there.”
2 Kings 4:8-10 ESV

What to pray for Pastor

And I will give you shepherds according to My heart, 

who will feed you with knowledge and understanding.

Jeremiah 3:15

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Please join our prayer group as we spend the week praying for our Pastors.

I'll post a daily reminder to pray on:
twitter @7DegreesOfMe
instagram @archadia27
facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power

Honor preachers and teachers

Let the elders who rule well 

be considered worthy of double honor, 

                                                         especially those who labor in 

                                                               preaching and teaching.

1 Timothy 5:17 ESV

Pray for a Pastor

     Yesterday morning at the beginning of church service, our men stood up at the front of the church and called the Pastor to join them. They said a prayer for him, asking God to be with him and give him the words to share the gospel, and just lifted him up in prayer. It made me think... how often do we look to our church leaders for guidance, help, or just to bend their ear? Or how often do we lift our leaders up to a higher standard than we expect from even ourselves? Think about everything they do. I'm amazed at their patience, knowledge, and especially their hearts. It takes a very special person to lead a flock.
     I am so grateful to have had some one-on-one time with our Pastor on several different occasions. His opinions and insight are very important to me. Just yesterday he spent a long time talking to me about my concerns of salvation for a loved one. I needed reassurances; he didn't give me the reassurances I needed, but instead gave me the truth that I needed to hear. It was a blessing to have that time.
     I have had three very special Pastors in my life and I didn't thank any of them nearly enough, but I'm going to try to remedy that this week.
     Join me, will you? Not only join in prayer for your Pastor but do something concrete. Send your Pastor a card, or an email, or even just a text and tell them what they have done for you and your walk with Christ.

Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls, as those who will have to give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with groaning, for that would be of no advantage to you.

Hebrews 13:17 ESV

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Please join our prayer group as we spend the week praying for our Pastors.

I'll post a daily reminder to pray on:
twitter @7DegreesOfMe
instagram @archadia27
facebook group 7th Hour Prayer Power